Portable or temporary restroom facilities are commonly used at outdoor events, construction sites, camp grounds, or other locations where the construction of permanent facilities may not be practical or cost-effective, or where the existing facilities are not sufficient. Portable or temporary restroom facilities usually include, at a minimum, a four-sided enclosure with an access door; a holding tank for waste; and a toilet in the form of a platform and seat with access to the holding tank. This type of restroom facility is commonly referred to as a “porta-potty.”
A portable or temporary restroom facility requires periodic cleaning, the frequency of which depends on the amount of use of the facility. Cleaning is often performed on-location, using a specially-configured truck commonly referred to as a “vacuum truck.” The vacuum truck evacuates the waste in the holding tank of the restroom facility into a specially-configured tank on the vacuum truck, so that the waste can be transported to and disposed of at a suitable waste-treatment facility. Alternatively, the restroom facility can be transported to another location, such as a centralized cleaning facility at the owner's place of business, and emptied and cleaned at that location.
A typical cleaning process also includes rinsing the interior surfaces of the holding tank and the enclosure using a hand-held spray device such as a spray gun, wand, or nozzle. The spray device directs a pressurized stream of cleaning fluid, such as water or a mixture of water and detergent, at the interior surfaces. The cleaning process can further include scrubbing the interior surfaces using a brush or other suitable device.
Rinsing and scrubbing the restroom facility can be messy, unpleasant, and potentially unhealthy for the laborer performing these tasks. For example, contact with overspray and splashing of the cleaning fluid and residual waste can pose a health hazard to the laborer, and potentially can place the employer in violation of various safety and environmental regulations.
Moreover, the need for the laborer to insert the hand-held spray device into the holding tank, and to manipulate the device to spray the interior surfaces of the holding tank can further increase the potential for exposure to residual waste. Also, it may be difficult or impractical to effectively rinse the interior surface of the holding tank in its entirety using a hand-held spray device.
The above-noted drawbacks can make it difficult to adequately clean portable or temporary restroom facilities on a consistent basis. Hence, the users of such facilities are often confronted with an unsanitary and potentially unhealthy facility. Moreover, the owner or operator of the restroom facility may compensate for the unsanitary or unhealthy conditions by using excessive amounts of disinfectant, potentially exacerbating the health hazard and the unpleasant odors associated with the facility.